Kiss from the Winter Spirit
by TheLovelyMotto
Summary: Lia was never one to believe. The catastrophic death of her parents on Christmas Day as a child was enough to convince her fairy-tales were never real. But Jack Frost immediately feels a connection between them he fears she never will. What if, even just for a moment, Lia lets herself imagine the possibilities of the ever-changing world?
1. Prologue

Prologue

A comforting hum intermingled with a faraway whisper lulled me back and forth from the dark. I shivered, an unwelcoming feeling of cold vibrating its way into the very core of my being. There was a moment of silence before another whisper prodded itself into my mind, begging for silent attention. It was soft and quiet, strong only when I gave it the ability to be. But even in its weakest moments, it continued calling out to me in ways I didn't understand. The whisper lured my body outwards, gently caressing the strange urge I felt to reach out and grab it, to grab the dim light within me I had never known existed. The whisper, however strange, was there, I _knew_ it was, but it was direly out of reach. It was teasing me, luring me out into the clear, luring me out until-

My eyes blinked open, a different kind of light harshly filtering its way through my eyelashes. I squinted, my surroundings giving way to an alternate reality.

"How was your nap, sweety?" my mother's voice cooed somewhere in front of me.

A crude yawn escaped my lips, and I absentmindedly reached my arms out and arched my back into a deep, satisfying stretch. I nodded in her general direction, senselessly believing it somehow answered the question. Whatever I was dreaming about had already evaporated itself out of my mind, and my head felt fuzzy from the sudden, invigorating feeling of consciousness.

"Are we there yet?" I grumbly asked, realizing my parents and I were still, frustratingly enough, traveling in the car. A wave of dread flooded over me at the possibility of being here for yet _another_ dull stretch of time. I desired nothing more than the relief that was to come when we arrived home, not simply because of what awaited us there, but also because my stomach was irritatingly empty to the point I felt sick.

Settled up at the front seat, my mother tore her gaze away from the winding road ahead of us to meet mine with her delicate, hazel-green eyes. "Hold on tight, princess. We have about another half hour left, but I know it'll be worth it when we get there. I promise," she assured me, giving me a tender, soft smile. She reached out and gently patted my knee before turning back to focus her eyes up ahead. I grinned for a moment, adoring her use of my nickname 'princess.' It always managed to uplift my dreary mood to listen… even if it meant boring my eyes out while doing so.

I dramatically sighed and threw my head back at the seat in impatience.

Today was Christmas, so it was incredibly difficult to ignore the fact that there were gifts sitting beneath that magical holiday tree of ours just _waiting_ to be opened. Even more aggravating was wondering what the legendary Santa Claus had chosen to give me that year. It left me with the urge to climb out the window and run faster than the car if need be, despite the weight of my nap still clinging to my shoulders.

I diverted my attention away from my mother, blinking away any leftover trace of sleep, and observed the frost-bitten window that had fogged up entirely from the chilly air outside. I lifted my hand, momentarily letting my finger graze over the biting cold of the glass, before outlining the form of a present box. My heart skipped a beat at the idea that Santa had been at my house just that previous night, not to mention that of every other child across the world as well. It was inevitable noting the hard work he must have put in to prepare for his holiday, just as other worldly spirits did for theirs no matter the difficulty of the job. Only contemplating the variety of such tasks exhausted me. In many ways, I was thankful I didn't have to fulfill these pressured responsibilities myself… but then again, there was no doubt in my mind that doing anything of the kind seemed like one heap of an adventure.

My eyes hazily focused so as to survey the moving trees and gently falling snow outside. The serenity and beauty of it nearly took my breath away. It seemed so peaceful out there – so full of trees and creatures and life. The notion that there was an entire _world_ out there seeking to be discovered left me with the overwhelming itch to explore it for my very o-

A humming crescendo, a deafening crack.

The front of the car blasted upwards, and I was uncontrollably hurled back against the cushion of the seat. I snapped my attention back up front, realizing the car had forcefully swirled itself off track, completely out of the highway. There were the horrid sounds of my father's screams as he desperately yanked the steering wheel left and right. It was evident that his feeble attempts of regaining control were useless the moment the car disobediently rolled onto its side and careened out of the highway, unavoidably carrying us with it.

I was slammed against the car door on impact. But before I could even process the turmoil, I was jolted back forwards, the sting of the seatbelt slicing into my skin leaving me utterly immobilized. The sound of dirt against metal screeched harshly against me ears, scaring away any leftover sensibility out of my mind. No longer was I keeping track of time nor direction. No longer was I scrambling to understand the predicament. Whether we were sailing in the air or hitting the ground, I didn't even know. Survival was unlikely, and that dreaded truth caused my throat to clench up in fear.

But the scream never came. I couldn't move. I couldn't cry. I couldn't even _try_ to struggle.

I could only stare at the vivid image of my parents resisting at the inevitability, fighting until the very end. Despite of the flying glass that sought to slice us into nothing, despite of the plunging metal that dangerously claimed its way to devour us… they _kept fighting_.

And so I stared.

I stared until the car plummeted to a halt. I stared until the stinging cuts numbed against my skin. I stared until I witnessed the life dwindle from their eyes. I stared until my world shattered before me.

And I kept staring… until that very whisper had faded into a cold, deadly silence.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Silence.

That's all Lia could hear among the crowd of people filtering around her.

A riveting and deafening silence.

She couldn't tell how long it had been there, exactly – that ever-going sound of emptiness. It could have been there for as long as her memory served her, perhaps when her very existence had begun, for all she cared. But it didn't matter, anyways. She had grown used to it. Welcomed it, even. It was the only thing that relentlessly comforted her lately, both in the darkest of nights and lightest of days–

Which was where she was now, much to her dismay, as Lia glared at the overly-vibrant painting of a woman standing upon a snow-covered landscape, smiling like some insane, naïve embodiment of the Christmas spirit… just like literally _every_ other painting at this godforsaken parade.

She shouldn't have been surprised, really. It was to be expected at such an event during the holidays, despite the fact that the beaming sun and cheery-blue sky contradicted the ideal image of snow during this time of year. She didn't even know why she had come or what it was she had been hoping for, exactly, while glancing at the row of paintings and illustrations hung in the tent before her. Originality? Relatability? Perhaps some kind of magical Christmas spirit that would prove to her this time of year was anything but a memory of nightmares and horrors? That kind of hope was something out of a fairytale, to say the very least.

A sigh escaped her lips as she continued her trek down the path of abundantly-filled tents celebrating the Burgess Holiday Spirit Parade. She practically rolled her eyes at the name. Burgess was the epitome of small-town stereotypes. Once, long ago, she would have considered it her home. But now…

Lia pursed her lips at yet _another_ drawing of children building a snowman with a top hat and scarf, then resorted to rubbing her temple with her fingers in sheer boredom. The first day of Winter Break from school and _this_ was all she had to look forward to. Ironic, really.

"Amelia?" a feminine voice questioned behind her. An unrelenting wave of relief flooded over her at the distraction. The familiar name made her turn in its direction and find herself standing before an older couple drastically wrapped in layers of winter clothing despite the barely-knit warmth of the afternoon.

"Mr. and Mrs. Bennett, hi!" she enthusiastically waved, striding over to them in a few steps before giving them both an abundant hug. They, too, seemed just as excited to see her. _Strange, that warmth,_ Lia thought to herself as she plastered on the brightest smile she could believingly come up with, choking down the hunger for amity inside. The feeling lingered, and she couldn't help but sense a familiar tug, a kindling fervor in her heart that had been there long ago, back before–

"Amelia, we've gone over this before. You call us Thomas and Anna, okay?" Thomas humorously scorned while giving her a rugged pat on the shoulder.

Lia understood the implication of his words; she knew the couple long enough to recognize there was no need for formalities, but it eased... no, _rescued_ her from the very pain she didn't doubt would soon follow once she allowed herself to get too close. It was a conclusion she learned all too well: love's risk was too great for a promise always broken.

Pushing the thought aside, Lia's gaze drifted up to the man before her, meeting his soulful visage. Thomas was undoubtedly handsome despite the soft wrinkles delicately traced over his skin, the evident brushwork of a fulfilling life painted over his figure. His sharp features coupled with his sad, round eyes gave the honest impression of a man with a mellow personality, that of which contradicted his wife's bright and sprightly one.

"Well, if that's the case, you _know_ it's okay to call me Lia, right?" she reminded Thomas with a rare dance of humor lit in her golden eyes. She immediately bit at her tongue and suppressed the urge to express the resentment at the name. Lia concluded long ago Thomas and Anna would never understand, regardless of what they knew about her history, what bitter weight the name carried. It was simply too soon to dare even acknowledge that part of herself.

Perhaps it always would be.

"But never mind that," Lia brushed aside. "What're you both doing here? I thought you guys would be on your way to Mount Hood by now," she asked, reeling her memory back to when the couple informed her it would no longer be necessary take care of their children, Jamie and Sophie, over the holidays because of their incoming family vacation. And, if memory served her right, they would have left just that day.

"It's why we were hoping to run into you here. We planned on calling you tonight, but we weren't sure whether or not you had other… plans…" Anna hesitantly trailed off, an expression of concern crossing her delicate face. It was strange knowing Thomas and Anna were both well-aware of the inevitable distress that was soon to come, but it only managed to make Lia feel exceedingly vulnerable and exposed, studied and poked at as if she were some experiment of emotional rehabilitation.

Lia attempted her best at overlooking Anna's prodding indication of the past. "It's fine, I'm open anytime, honestly. Do you guys need me to come over or anything?"

"We would be incredibly grateful if you could, yes," Thomas immediately chirped in with a small smile, picking up at Lia's discomfort. "Something came up with Anna's work in her studio out west. At first, we considered bringing the kids along, but we doubted they would want to spend their break sitting in one office meeting after the other. So we were hoping you could step in for the time being," he explained.

Lia could have sworn her heart danced for a moment, and she mentally admitted to herself there was nothing else she would rather do over break. After all, them three had been nicknamed the "Three Human Guardians," as insisted by Jamie. Though Lia knew it was a dangerous line to dare cross, she couldn't help the emotional relief at acknowledging every moment with them to be more blissful than the last. It was as if the last shred of empathy in her was unwilling to flicker and fade, much unlike the rest of her already had.

A holiday venture with the two was much better than what Lia originally had planned, anyhow.

"Yeah, it'd be no problem at all! You guys know just how much I enjoy taking care of them. Would you guys be gone the entire break?" she asked, the sunny day feeling much more appropriate for the situation. She could practically feel the warmth of the sun caressing her back transcending into the very core of her being.

"We'll probably be back a few days before New Year's if things go as planned. My sister Vicky will help look out for them at night after she finishes her shifts at the hospital," Anna replied. There was a moment of hesitation before she continued, " But you could… spend your nights over at our house if you'd like, so you don't have to travel back and forth between yours and ours every day, that is," she welcomed with a soft smile.

 _Like mother and daughter._

Lia let slip a faint smile. "I really do appreciate the offer, but I don't think that would be necessary. Your place isn't too far. Besides, I always enjoy a good walk home at night."

The couple nodded, no trace of surprise at her rejection.

"Alright, we'll let you in on the details tonight before we head out… what is it, tomorrow?" Anna turned to Thomas. He dipped his head in confirmation.

Lia dug her hands deeper into the pockets of her silver coat, attempting her best at preventing her surging heart from uncontrollably pounding against her chest. She couldn't tell whether or not to convey her elation, whether or not it was _inhuman_ of her not to at all because of the unexpected breach in her yearly schedule. Being with Jamie and Sophie... that was one of the only things she lived for these days. She knew it regardless of everything that had happened. But it was customary of her, _expected_ of her to retreat back when things got too normal, too… comfortable.

Yet for whatever reason, Lia managed a single nod. And with that nod came the breaking of her only rule.

 _Don't step too close._

But just like that, she already was.

* * *

Lia knocked on the door while miserably attempting to blow away some of her silver curls from her face. Unluckily enough, the snow, as predicted, harshly began falling down unforgivingly like rain the very next day. The many Burgess neighborhood streets were covered ruthlessly in the time it took to prepare her things for her day at the Bennett house that morning.

Lia took in a deep, shuddering breath at the snow's symbolic implication. It was difficult for her to accept Christmas, the day she dreaded most, was at an arm's length away again – one week, to be exact. The mental barrier she set up for herself every year was slowly chipping away by the aberration of her own thoughts. The anxiety of it caused nearly every nerve in her body to tremble as if wavering at the edge of a breakdown. The most she could ever bring herself to do was grieve when the day inevitably came, which meant eating all the sweets and chocolates left as "presents" by her grandfather whenever he wound up any useless time to visit throughout the year, if at all.

Christmas had become Lia's own personal tradition at this point: she would first convince herself into believing every dessert she laid her eyes upon would somehow alleviate and sweeten up that bitter hole constantly gaping in her chest. She would then lock the bedroom door, tangle herself in worn-down sheets, stare at the intricate carvings of the ceiling, and allow her mind to wander into the furthermost nooks and edges of herself she had never given anybody else the satisfaction of knowing existed. She eventually accepted it didn't matter whether or not she mourned, that it was her way of complaining how damningly unfair it was no one else carried that burden, but it ultimately provided a way of grasping at the fabricated strings of a possible life long lost.

Shuffling footsteps on the other side of the door dragged Lia back to the present. _Easy,_ she cautioned myself. She angrily wiped away at the cool tears that unknowingly found remnant paths to trickle down her cheeks. _Just a couple of weeks, then you take that step back again._

Lia prepared a bright smile just as a smaller figure opened the door.

Jamie.

The sight of him and his genuine excitement to see her practically made Lia want to die on the spot every time. He was insanely, impossibly, _unfathomably_ cute.

He was nine-years-old now, and a courageous, smart one at that. His darkened-brown hair drooped over his chestnut eyes as they gazed wondrously– no, _lovingly_ at Lia. He had just lost his other front tooth as well, a slight difference from the previous spring when he began reciting abnormal stories about Jack Frost, the evil magic dude she always remembered from that one terrible Christmas movie. But just as it always disturbed Lia to see how exaggerated his abilities were to incorporate himself into a wide scope of tales, so too did it delight her to see his creativity soar further, wilder, _freer_ than hers ever got the chance to.

"Lia!" Jamie gleefully cheered as he bounded over to her and attempted throwing his arms around her neck. He practically pulled her down so as to give her a barely-distinguishable hug.

Lia couldn't help but give out a small giggle and immediately clutch him closer. "Nice to see you too, Jamie! How's your break been?" she smiled, unwrapping herself from his arms and leaning down so as to look him in the eyes.

"It's. Been. AMAZING!" he shouted. "Sophie and I went sledding in, like, these really big, GIGANTIC mountains next to our school and then we went, like, REALLY, REALLY high up and I sled down SO FAST my hat flew off and then I crashed right into this HUGE pile of snow and then my family dug me out and then me and Jack had an EPIC snowball fight that I TOTALLY won but he kept saying HE won and so we had ANOTHER epic snowball fight and then-"

"Woah, woah, woah! Slow down there, bud! Breathe a bit before you pass out on me!" Lia chimed in while gently clasping her hand over his mouth. He was a rather endless source of positivity, and she somehow couldn't suppress the bubbly laughter that escaped her lips because of it. Such an occurrence was rare, but leave it to Jamie to never fail drawing it out of her – he was that unbreakable lifeline to the flickering beacon of love inside her.

Before Jamie even had the chance to reply, Lia spotted another head peek out the door.

"Sophie!" Lia greeted, widening her arms just as the petite blonde plunged into her with much jovial grace. She released her and took a moment to mimic-ly study her up and down. "Look how much you've grown over the past two days! You'll be just as big as me in no time," she teased, lightly tapping her cute button nose.

"Really?" Sophie gasped. She squealed and boastfully puffed out her chest with glee. Lia giggled, unknowingly lifting up both children's spirits because of it. Lia met Sophie's wide-eyed gaze and mentally noted her excitement of witnessing what kind of beautiful girl she would blossom into.

Lia clapped her hands together. "Now then! What's our plan for our first day together?"

Jamie drew a delighted gasp. "Can we write our letters to Santa?" he pleaded, looking at Lia with his invincible, puppy-eyed charm. It was an expression Jamie knew perfectly well had a drastic effect over her. Not once had she yet been unable to succumb to it.

Lia playfully made herself appear thoughtful for a second, tapping her chin and narrowing her eyes in consideration. "Well…" she drawled.

"Please?! Please?! Please?!" Sophie and Jamie chanted together while energetically darting in circles around her, excitement gleaming in their eyes.

Lia released an exaggerated sigh and stood. "Okay, okay," she conceded, her hands braced up in a surrendering gesture. Though she would never admit it aloud, especially to the two she loved darting around her, no greater surge of dread had ever flooded to her very core at agreeing to help them celebrate the worst day of her life. But she was nevertheless innocently met with cheers, and both kids sprinted inside the cover of their home with hasty, thundering footsteps.

Lia bit her lip. _Just a couple of weeks_ , she reminded herself once again with a droop of the shoulders _. Then you step back again._

She glanced behind her and gave the irritatingly beautiful snow a fierce glare before closing the door.

While Jamie and Sophie searched for the materials required to make their Christmas cards, Lia prepared what would be the first dinner of many for the next few weeks. It was a miracle, really, that their parents offered her a job as a caretaker despite knowing her drastic inexperience at any housework chores.

The first time she had done so was only a year ago. She resisted at first, of course, doing her best to convince them she wasn't suited for that kind of responsibility. Her lack of sociability at the time should have put her at the bottom of their list in terms of options, to say the least. But it was for that very reason they persisted - they believed it necessary that Lia "spend time with loved ones" during her time of sorrow to rewrite that negativity in her own terms instead of reminiscing over her past. It was the first and only time she ever argued with them about her way of life.

They never brought up the topic again.

"There!" Jamie said, slamming a heavy load down onto the kitchen table, ripping Lia away from her thoughts. She turned from the stove and was shocked at the variety of materials placed over the kitchen table: a plastic box filled with colored pencils, markers, erasers, glitter pens, and glue, amongst other things, and an alarmingly-large pile of paper.

"Just how many letters are you planning on writing, exactly?" she joked.

"Just one," Jamie responded rather seriously, innocently misinterpreting her light sarcasm.

"Ah," Lia nodded, amused. She took in the view of Jamie rummaging through the materials and messily spreading them out over the table. "It seems you're quite the little expert on these kind of things, then, aren't you?" she teased, a beaming smile making its way over Jamie's face at the compliment. Wiping her hands on a tablecloth, Lia sat on the kitchen chair adjacent to him, waiting for the water to boil for the spaghetti she would no doubt manage to burn.

"I really hope Santa's able to do everything perfectly this year now that Pitch is gone," Jamie said more as a comment to himself before carefully removing a sheet from the pile and grabbing a fistful of glittery supplies.

Lia gave him a forced smile, a sense of worry and uneasiness prickling away at her mind. Jamie was nine now, and despite being one of the most intelligent students of his grade, knowing drastic amounts of facts about history and science alike, he never wavered in his belief in those he called "The Guardians," _especially_ when it came to the infamous Jack Frost. It shocked her to see him remain faithful to both worlds yet be blinded to the wall separating them. Lia could barely acknowledge to herself she believed as a ten-year-old... or so it was until she got her life ripped away from her. She felt it her duty now to slowly pull Jamie back away from that fire, to be his salvation before it threatened to kill his heart just as it had her own spirit long ago.

Jamie glanced up at Lia and noted her immobility. "Will you write one with me?" he asked, reaching out to give her the nearest pen he could find. Wide-eyed, she stared at it. She couldn't recall ever daring to write a letter to Santa in almost a decade. There was never a need, let alone a desire to. Lia didn't have faith in his or any of the other holiday spirits' existence. It was so easy to forget, at times, how cruel it was to fool children into believing something that was a lie, as if consciously preparing them for a world where truth and empathy held little value.

But when Lia saw Jamie's puppy-eyed charm once again, it was enough to push her over the edge and slowly lift her hand up to grasp the pen he held.

There was a flash of red in the corner of Lia's eye. Sophie bounded up to the table and took a seat in striped candy-cane pajamas. In her arms was the one and only Bunnymund, the stuffed Easter bunny she had shown a delightful attachment to. She carried it with her everywhere regardless of the circumstances. Why it was she was so incredibly fond of it Lia had no idea.

"Sophie, you brought Bunnymund!" Jamie excitedly remarked, tickling his dear sister. "You ready to help him and Santa again?" She squeaked with delight in response.

Jamie excitedly reached for his fair share of writing materials before folding his paper and digging into his work, Sophie a step behind to follow. Lia, however, stared at the paper placed before her as if expecting it to write something on its own. She knew fully-well Santa's gifts were materialistic, a further demonstration of the holiday's absurd marketability. She had desires, yes, but she perceived them invalid, reserved for those who still had the strength and will to find a way of living again. Her past few years were enough evidence to support the claim that she was not one of them.

However, a whisper halted Lia - the whisper of a ten-year-old girl. A girl with dreams. A girl with spirit. A girl Lia had grown hateful towards, angry at what she had but never appreciated. It was the voice of the hope she once held, the voice of her childhood.

Lia couldn't suppress the urge to reach down and yank on the weight that pushed down her very heart and soul. And for a moment, she let herself imagine it.

A home. A sanctuary of the mind and heart, a haven for her to come to, a place where she could lay at rest for every comforting night and fulfilling day. A family - not a replacement of the one she lost, but an inclusion of it. Being somebody to someone, someone to something. Not simply through empty words and hollow promises and calculated obligations - she wanted to feel it inside, rooted so profoundly into her soul she would never doubt for one moment she lived for something, forever and fully accepted. A confirmation that she was valid, that she was not defined by the stains of her past but by the hopes of her future.

 _Family. Love. Purpose. Home._

Lia could almost laugh at the absurdity of it.

How was it possible for it to be so much, _too_ much... yet so little at the same time?

She hesitantly traced the words, letter by letter, heartache by heartache. A naive promise to herself, perhaps, that she wasn't fully gone, that she was still in there somewhere fighting to make her parents proud.

"Lia, are you okay?" Sophie asked, placing her hand gently over hers.

Lia snapped out of her entranced state. Her gaze met Sophie's, then Jamie's, both of them evidently shocked.

Lia suddenly felt the path of tears trickling down her cheeks, a betrayal of the vows she made to never look at herself too long around others. She harshly wiped them away and gave the two a reassuring smile.

"Yeah…" she managed a whisper. With a deep, calming breath, her expression contorted into something new and practiced. A mask of positivity. Anyone who would have looked at her then and there would never have guessed she'd been in tears only moments before. "Sorry, I was just thinking about how badly I want another Bunnymund like yours, Sophie."

"You like Bunnymund too?" she gasped and held out the stuffed bunny so it was only a matter of inches from Lia's face. She chuckled despite feeling Jamie's concerned stare boring into her.

"Well, of course!" Lia enthused, discretely folding the sheet of paper and gripping it tightly into her hand. She stood from her chair and strode over to Sophie's side. "Who in the world wouldn't want a Bunnymund as cute and fluffy as yours?" she joked as she pet the stuffed animal, earning a rewarding giggle on Sophie's part. Her laugh was an angel's lullaby too pure for this world. What Lia wouldn't give to ensure Sophie could keep that pure melody until the end of her days.

"So, what is it you're going to ask Santa to get you for Christmas?" Jamie asked. There was a hint of curiosity glazing his concern, a hidden question buried beneath his words.

 _Why were you crying?_

Lia's expression faltered. Thomas and Anna were well aware of the details of her past, but it didn't take long for her to realize they never shared that knowledge with their children. Perhaps they determined it would steal them of the very childhood Lia had been stripped from, or perhaps they felt it her choice to share it on her own. Regardless, Lia did everything in her power to keep that part of herself at bay. Though it became easier for it to slip the closer Christmas loomed, she would rather keep the world believing she was content until she somehow believed it herself rather than it becoming a broken record of conversation, an image she would have to re-affirm to others day after day. It was that mindset what kept her from caving in completely.

"What else could I ask for but to be with the two people I love most in this entire world?" she replied, her smile brighter still but the letter in her hand feeling heavier than ever.

Jamie grinned and embraced her in a hug. Somehow, Lia sensed he didn't truly believe her. But she appreciated his drop of the subject.

"Maybe I'll ask Santa to help me keep you guys in check every once in awhile since you guys cause _so_ much trouble," Lia teased, patting the back of his head.

Jamie released her and jokingly scoffed. "What? _Us_ causing trouble?" He stopped, a mischievous grin finding its way across his lips. "You're one to talk."

He stuck out his tongue. Before Lia could even process the slap-back, he leaped out of his chair and sprinted into the living room, leaving Sophie in a fit of giggles. Lia turned to her. "Oh, you think this is funny, huh? You think this is funny?" She tickled her, and Sophie's beautiful laugh enveloped the sound of the kitchen once again.

"Well we'll see about that!" Lia yelled after Jamie before darting into the living room and chasing after him.

The rest of the evening was filled with footsteps, laughter, and cheers.

* * *

Tucking in the children was by far Lia's favorite part of the day. There was a certain peacefulness to witnessing them resting and unmoving, like a demonstration of the dreams and hopes they carried with them every moment of their lives. It was an ethereal reminder there was a shred of purity and goodness in life, that even the horrors and demons making up the world could not reach them for a moment, incapable of skewing their minds as they had hers long ago.

"Will you read me a bedtime story?" Jamie asked. He hopped into a lavished bed of snowflake sheets Lia turned down for him. Sophie was already gone the moment her head hit the pillow in her own room.

"Which one would you like to hear?" she asked him, patting and smoothing down the comforter around his legs and sitting beside him.

"Do you know the one about Jack Frost?" he suggested.

Lia pursed her lips, unsurprised by the mention of his favorite holiday character. Even though it didn't take much to recognize his love for the winter spirit, he'd never taken the chance to talk about Jack Frost's life and history, only the moments Jamie had supposedly spent time with him and the Guardians. "Hmm… I don't think I know enough about him to give you a bedtime story, no. I've only ever seen his character in a couple of movies and books, not much else."

"Would you like me to tell it to you?" he asked.

Lia tucked a strand of his behind his ear, his chocolate-colored eyes looking wondrously up at her. "Well, when you look at me like _that_ , how could I refuse to?" she tenderly replied. She sighed as she plopped down on her back next to him, the softness of his mattress a welcoming comfort to her busy night of running and laughing and cleaning. Jamie pressed himself against her and took a strand of her own hair between his fingertips.

"Your hair is almost as white as his, did you know that? It's really light," he remarked, his gaze fixated on Lia's silvery locks.

Amused, she turned her head to face his and lifted an eyebrow. "Oh really? And why do you suppose that is?"

"Dunno," he shrugged. "Maybe you stayed out in the snow too long."

Lia laughed. It was true; her silver hair was a rarity in the family, a recessive trait passed down on her mother's side for generations. She hated it as a child, begging her parents to dye it so she would look like everyone else her age at the time. She could still recall the memory of her mother's voice now - it had been a dreadful night of temper tantrums and protests on Lia's part before her mother sat before her and wiped the tears from her eyes.

 _If you're afraid of what the world thinks of you, princess, then you're afraid of yourself. That hair is a part of who you are. If you learn to hate it, you will learn to think the same of yourself._

She remembered waking up the next morning furious at the battle she lost. But after the passing of her parents, anytime she considered making a stop at the salon or buying a package of hair dye from the store, her mother's words would echo in her mind and remind her she would always be her child. Lia since then vowed to honor her memory.

"Alright then, my beloved Guardian. Tell me the story about this 'Jack Frost.' How did he end up becoming who he is?" she asked Jamie, snuggling herself more comfortably in the covers.

"Okay, you ready? 'Cause it's really, really cool," he began. "He goes from being, like, this village boy into this super awesome, flying, winter-controlling, ice-shooting-out-of-his-staff-superhero after falling into a pond and meeting the rest of the Guardians like Santa and the Tooth Fairy and ends up battling, like, the scariest villain of all time in the history of scary things that no one thought he could stop and then he lost his power but then I got to be a part of it and then suddenly Jack got his powers back and then-"

Jamie stopped when he saw the bewildered look on Lia's face.

He bit his lip in realization. "Ah… right, sorry. I'll go slower this time, don't worry!" he promised. She nodded with a giggle and placed a hand behind her head, attentive and ready to listen. He took a deep breath and began once again.

And so, Lia came to learn of the village boy who became Jack Frost. She learned of the child who loved his sister and sacrificed his life to save her. She learned of his tragic solitude and grief, of his 300 year long isolation from the world, unseen and unheard of by those he devoted his very life for. She learned of his awakening and eventual bestowment as one of five Guardians by the one they called "The Man on the Moon." She learned of his heartbreak, his denial, and unwillingness to serve until his spirit returned to him and he found his purpose to serve - his Center.

She learned of this until Jamie drifted into a deep slumber, caught in between a web of words of Jack's eventual success against Pitch alongside the Guardians, Jamie, and his friends.

Jack's story, however imaginary, itched at the scars deeply-rooted in Lia's heart. There was a fateful beauty to it - the sense of finding oneself despite the limitations of your own mind and soul. She pondered at the irony of it all, how his story reflected the very fears she chained ever-so-closely to herself.

Lia's attention drifted over to Jamie once she heard his soft and steady breathing. She knew she should be worried of the fairy-tales he embedded himself into; it was harmful to himself and to his future. However, a part of her wondered at the innocence of it all, the endearment of desiring a life greater than your own, however far-fetched it may be.

Lia shook her head and cleared her mind of such pestilent thoughts. Reaching into the back pocket of her worn-down jeans, she took out her phone and looked at the time.

Ten o'clock. And a message from Vicky: _Just finished my shift at the hospital. On my way. You're still more than welcome to stay the night :)_

Lia breathed out a heavy sigh and rolled out of bed. She didn't want to be here and get caught up in a conversation with Vicky before making her way home. She was exhausted already by what she did with them that day.

Turning back, Lia leaned over Jamie's bedside and pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead. She yawned and switched off the light on his nightstand soon after, the room immediately draped in a shadow of saturated moonlight.

Lia strode over to the window. She took a moment to gaze up at the moon shining effortlessly over the Burgess street before her, as calm and bold as ever. She couldn't deny the fact that despite Jamie's falsehoods about the spirit supposedly lingering there, protecting the children of the world, it was absolutely breathtaking, like a confident masterpiece painted in a sea of twinkling stars. She remembered the many nights she'd stare at it from her window as a child, entranced by its ghostly beauty and light. She could feel that spirit within her for a moment, the one where she was a part of a world she couldn't quite understand.

But that feeling disappeared just as soon as it came.

Glancing once more at Jamie resting peacefully in his bed, Lia grabbed her things and made her way out the house, thankful to find the snow had ceased its fall.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **I _finally_ finished off the revised, first chapter! AWWW YEAH! Pretty boring for the most part I know haha and not too drastically different from the original (although 1st POV vs 3rd POV _is_ quite a leap), but I've really been focusing on effectively developing the proper mood and essence of these characters so I can build a better foundation for the story, _especially_ when it comes Lia. The original version had wayyyy too much cringe worthy "fourteen-year-old me" in a seventeen-year-old body. Oops! Haha and sorry btw for the long break, college is haaard to keep a personal life with, especially when it comes to drawing/animating. Now that it's summer, I can hopefully spend more time working on the story :)**

 **Out of curiosity, I've been debating whether or not to jump back and forth between Jack and Lia's POV throughout this version. I wonder if doing so compromises our connection to Lia as a character since it potentially breaks us away from her side of things during crucial moments of the plot. I'd love to hear your thoughts!**

 **Anyways, sorry for the rambling. Again, I want to say thank you so, _so_ much for your support in this big step forwards for the story! I can't even begin to emphasize just _how much_ it means to me. You guys are all seriously incredible for all the love and support you've sent my way with this decision, and I'm so ecstatic to see that some of my fellow readers are just as excited about it as I am!**

 **Please feel free to review or leave a comment, point out any errors/typos, or simply chat about anything on your mind! I love being able to talk with anyone who wishes to :)**

 **Lots of love!**

 **TheLovelyMotto**


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